The Cauldron and the Mutfak (Kitchen) in Janissary Tradition
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| A depiction of A Janissary in his military attire |
The term Yeniçeri Ocağı translates into English as the Janissary Hearth. The Janissary, or Yeniçeri (in Turkish), espoused specific traditions in their customs, uniforms, rites and regalia that focused on the hearth.
For the Janissary soldier – who was quite unlike any other soldier in his time – the kitchen of his Ocak (barracks) was at the heart of his home and of huge importance to him. This has in part to do with religion, the dervish order he and his brothers ascribed to, and the old Turkish (Oghuz Turkler) Toy tradition* (see endnote) more than it has to do with food itself.
That wooden spoon nestled in the plume holder of his Börk (headdress) was a part of the Janissary’s military uniform as much as it was his utensil to eat his çorba (soup) or pilav (rice). The simple cauldron, which the Janissary found his meal in and to others just a cooking vessel, was a standard which was almost equal to the status of a flag - respected and cherished. The cauldron quite literally served as a reminder of the oath of loyalty the Janissary took to the Sultan and to his brethren. It also symbolized the "kaşık kardeşliği", or the "brotherhood of the spoon", which reflected a sense of comradeship among the Janissaries who ate, slept, fought and died together.
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| The spoon would fit in the middle, in the kaşıklık, on the feather holder |
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| Janissary Börk |
Each barrack had a few cauldrons to cook their meals in, and these cauldrons were a constant and daily reminder of the famed relic, the Kazan-i-Şerif (the “noble” cauldron of Haci Bektaş, the Pir (similar to a patron saint) of their Dervish order), who first initiated the tradition of feeding the Janissary soldiers with his Kazan. In fact, each kitchen had a special cauldron used to represent this relic and hung in the aş evi (kitchen) and this cauldron served as the focus point in Janissary events and festivals.
The cauldron is tied to loyalty – it is the token of acceptance of the “food” given to them by the Sultan (both their “master”, and the “source” of their daily bread). Overturning a cauldron was seen as a sign of disapproval, which eventually became the way to express discontent or unhappiness with the state of affairs – and even in some cases, signalled revolt.
The symbolical nature of the kitchen was found in the physical structure of the corps. The entire order and rank was organized on the hearth and ranking men were given titles such as aşcıbaşı (head cook), Karakullukçu (scullion), çorekçi (bread baker), gözlemeci (flat bread baker) and so on. The high-ranking Janissary officials even met and held important counsels in the kitchen.
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| A depiction of the cauldron |
The corps was headed by a Chief Agha who was an extremely powerful individual. The agha ranked just below the Pashas of the Divan and in fact, was part of the Divan himself, and in some instances, ranked higher than military commanders. It is very obvious that he was a man who wielded impressive power. An agha could eventually serve as Pasha after completing service if the Sultan chose him to. The corps itself was made up of battalions, each battalion having two or sometimes three cauldrons to feed one hundred to five hundred men.
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These battalions were called Orta, and were composed of the beyliks (Sultan’s guards) some employed as the Sultan’s personal archers, the Cemaat or frontier soldiers, and the Sekban, the irregular mercenary soldiers.
The Çorbacıbaşı, leader of a battalion, carried a huge metal ladle signifying that he was responsible for serving food to his men – this was symbolic in nature as he never really did the actual serving. The rules of food preparation were based on the same rules followed in the palace which were set down by Sultan Fatih Mehmet I himself, after the conquering of Constantinople. For example, preparation for the day’s meal began before sunrise and the consumption of alcohol was strictly forbidden.
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| The Corbasibasi seen on the right with his ladle |
It was customary and considered a great honour for the Janissaries to sometimes have the Sultan eat with them. They would often host the Sultan for a feast which they would specially prepare for him.
**Note: In the tradition of Oghuz Turks, and more specifically for our purposes, the Kayı tribe that the Ottoman line hails from, the elders would gather together in the main tent of the Bey for the Toy. The Toy is a tradition dating back to the Huns. This gathering of elders who share a meal together played a central and significant role in the traditions of the Oghuz Turks. Important men from the tribe would be invited to the main tent for a meal and then a meeting would convene with matters being discussed, solutions being presented and finally, official decisions of the Bey being announced.
It was very important for all involved to attend the Toy. It is interesting to note that, each member carried a wooden spoon inside his coat, with which he would use to eat with once the meal was served. This spoon was carried with them at all times, as it was significant, just as it would be later on with the Janissary tradition, as a symbol of the importance of the meal in the ties of brotherhood and the responsibilities of the leader being the one who fed those under his rule.
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| A depiction of a Toy gathering of the Kayi Boyu (the line of the Ottoman Dynasty) from the series "Dirilis Ertugrul" |
Devellioglu, Ferit. Osmanlica-Turkce Ansiklopedik Lugat. Aydin Kitabevi. 2010
Uyar, Mesut and Erickson, Edward. A Military History of the Ottomans: From Osman to Ataturk. Vol. 1, ABC CLIO LLC, 2009
Nicolle, David. The Janissaries. Osprey Publishing. 1998
Singer, Amy. Constructing Ottoman Beneficence: An Imperial Soup Kitchen in Jerusalem. State University of New York Press. 2003
The Cambridge World History of Food. Vol. 2. Cambridge University Press. 2000
The Encyclopedia of Islam. Second Edition. Edited by P.J. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Brill. 2005
Islam Ansiklopedisi Turkiye Diyanet Vakfi
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